On Sunday Night Football, the Ravens look to continue their march to home-field advantage in the AFC. Meanwhile, Jacksonville seeks to stay ahead of their AFC South rivals.
Week 12 of last season saw the Jaguars stun the Ravens, which kickstarted their run to an AFC South title. A year and a few weeks later, the teams return to Jacksonville for what is only the Jaguars’ second-ever appearance in the Sunday night slot. In that only other appearance, the Jaguars lost 26-21 to the Steelers in 2008. This matchup is loaded with playoff implications, as will be the case for every remaining weekend of this season.
The Ravens have been one of the league’s best this season for how they have looked like a complete team from top to bottom while also avoiding pitfalls that have doomed other teams. A win and some help will ensure Baltimore becomes the AFC’s first team to secure a playoff spot. To do this, Lamar Jackson and his fourth-ranked scoring offense need to have another lights-out performance. Jackson works very well in these situations as he is 5-1 all-time on Sunday night. Rookie Zay Flowers should figure to be a huge part of Baltimore’s puzzle, and his 64 catches thus far rank third amongst rookies and first among all rookie receivers in Ravens franchise history.
The Jaguars’ fanbase may begin to wonder if their season is starting to slip away. Their once-seemingly unassailable lead in the AFC South is now in a precarious position. Trevor Lawrence is still mending from his high-ankle sprain, though he did enough to keep Jacksonville in the game last weekend against Cleveland before ultimately falling 31-27. Zay Jones was a huge part of that Week 12 meeting in 2022 with Baltimore, where he caught 11 passes for 145 yards, and should be a factor yet again. A loss here and either Indianapolis or Houston winning would have the AFC South in a tie going into the final weeks.
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Game Info
Date: Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023
Start time: 8:20 p.m. ET
Location: Jacksonville, Fla.
Stadium: EverBank Stadium
TV Info: NBC, NFL+, Sunday Ticket
Betting Odds
Odds courtesy of DraftKings.
Point Spread: JAX +3 (-108), BAL -3 (-112)
Moneyline: JAX (+136), BAL (-162)
Over/Under: O/U 42.5 (-110)
A very close match awaits.
What To Watch For
Kansas City and Miami’s losses last weekend effectively leave Baltimore in the driver’s seat to claim home-field advantage in the AFC. However, to win this game and continue their run, the Ravens need to forget what happened in Jacksonville to them one year ago and make no mistakes for four quarters. Losing here would damage their momentum going into a heavyweight matchup on Christmas Night in San Francisco against the 49ers.
For Jacksonville, a season with high hopes could turn into one that would be on the rocks with a loss in this game. The 28-27 win from Week 12 last season was a momentum builder for the rest of their 2022 season and into the playoffs, and Jacksonville needs to come out swinging to silence any doubts hanging over them. If the Jaguars do not win the AFC South or even make the playoffs, many will look back at the three weeks between the Cincinnati game and this game as the chief reason why.
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